A trained and experienced service engineer
“When I joined, this type of work, the diagnosis and machine overhaul, appealed to me. The training is so thorough. I knew I wanted to stay long-term after the first few months here,” he says.
Engineering is in the Faries family; Matt’s grandfather was an engineer, and his father is an automotive engineer for Jaguar Land Rover, so a technically skilled career was on the cards.
He can now diagnose, service and repair any ARBURG moulding machine in the product range, covering hydraulic, servo-hydraulic, hybrid and electric, and has deep knowledge of all ARBURG technologies – except the freeformer additive manufacturing machine.
The job entails a lot of travel. Meeting customers and developing a relationship is an aspect of the job he loves. “I’m on the road all the time. I’ve supported customers all over the UK and Ireland – we will go wherever the customer is located. I have always enjoyed the travel aspect, but I’m beginning to think it would be nice to use more of Arburg’s remote diagnostic technology and operate a little more from a desk!”
Being one of the most innovative moulding technology companies, technology is constantly changing. This also really appeals to Matt. “There are always new things to learn. New technology, software, remote monitoring, is coming out constantly and it has advanced from when I started in 2014. More advanced electric machines are popular now. Drive technology is changing, servo motors, electrification etc, and new efficiencies are coming out all the time.”
Training means regular training courses at ARBURG in Lossburg, Germany. His first intensive course lasted three months on site, and typically he returns to Lossburg for one week annually.
Matt has trained and worked in the digital age – he is a “digital native”, finding the remote monitoring and diagnosis of modern ARBURG machines intuitive. The general electro-mechanical principles of IMMs have not changed, regarding faults and breakdowns, but now company laptops connect to the machines to read error codes that reveal deeper diagnoses. “The codes also suggest some other reasons for the fault, if it’s not caused by the most obvious reason.”
arburgXworld is the digital platform helping customers to run their mould shop more efficiently. “I don’t advise customers directly about arburgXworld, but I discuss and encourage it with them. It is being adopted. You can order spares online, get the machine data and compare its performance in a paperless system.”